Knitting-machine.



6. IE. STEVENS. KNITTING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED 00112. m4.

Patented Dana 4L, 191?.

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GEORGE E. STEVENS, 0F LAGONIA, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

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To all whom it may concern: 7

7 Be it known that I, GEORGE E. STEVENS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Laconia, county of Belknap, State of New Hampshire, have invented an Improvement in Knitting-Machines, of which the following description, in connection with the ac companying drawing, is a specification, like characters on the drawing representing like parts.

This invention relates to dial knitting machines, and particularly to machines of this type which are provided with means for automatically forming a slack course or courses in the tubular fabric at predetermined intervals in the length thereof so that One convenient way of effecting the for- "inder needles by which when the slack the fabric can be severed at the ,slack courses into lengths adapted to be used for the tops of half hose, cuffs for shirts, drawers, etc.

mation of the slack course above referred to in the operation of a knitting machine of the above type has been to provide means as sociated with the cam for operating the cylcourse is to be formed said needles are given an additional or extra vertical movement so as to produce longer loops, this being accomplished by providing the cam by which the cylinder needles are operated with a movable portion and providing suitable mecha-' nism, usually pattern-controlled mechanism, to move said movable portion into a pos1- tion to cause the cylinder needles to have an additional movement at such times as the slack course or courses are to be formed.

lt has been proposed to provide means cooperating with the horizontal or dial needles by which the latter are elevated at the time that the vertical or cylinder needles are given their extra or downward movement, this upward or lifting movement of the dial needles cooperating with the extra downward movement of the cylinder needles to produce a slack course with enlarged loops.

It is a knitting machine of this latter class to which my invention particularly relates and the object of the invention is to provide a novel device for elevating the dial needles for the formation of the slack course, which.

Specification of Letters Patent.

KNITTING-MACHINE.

Application filed October 12., 1914. Serial No. 866,215.

means will perform its duty without subjecting the dial needles to any'strain tending to bend the dial needles out of their proper position or to otherwise injure them. In knitting machines of this type the needles which are used are small, delicate in their construction, and are easily injured or damaged if subjected to any violent force or strain. My lnventlon provides a devicev for elevating the d1al needles which can be used without injuring or afl'ecting the operation of the most delicate needles.

In order to give an understanding of my invention 1 have illustrated in the drawings a selected embodiment thereof which will now be described, after which the novel fea tures will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a knitting machine having my improvements applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a partial sectional view on the line 00-00, Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail views through the dial-needle-elevating member taken on substantially the line y- Fig. 1, said views illustrating the operation of the invention.

The dial-knitting machine illustrated in the drawings comprises a frame or bed 1 carrying a needle cylinder 2 in which the vertical or cylinder needles operate, as usual, and also carrying a circular dial 3 in which the dial needles 40 operate. The vertical or cylinder needles are given their vertical or knitting movement by means of a cam car ried by a cam ring 4 which is rotatively mounted on the frame, and thedial needles are given their knitting movement by means of a dial cam 5 which rotates with the cam ring 4, said dial cam 5 being herein shown as secured to a yoke or frame 6 which is rigid with the cam ring 4. The cam ring4 is driven by any suitable or usual mecha able cam member being herein actuated by a lever 7 pivoted at 8 to the cam ring and provided with a pin 9 which is adapted to be actuated by a pattern cam 10 mounted on a rotary shaft 11 extending from the cam ring 4. This shaft is actuated to bring the cam 10 into operation periodically by means of a star-wheel 12 mounted thereon which at each rotation of the cam ring is engaged by one or more pins carried by the frame 1. 'A dial-knitting machine having the above-described construction is well known to those skilled in the art and its operation need not be described in detail.

y present improvements relate to a novel device for lifting the dial needles at the same time that the lever 7 is actuated i to give the cylinder needles their additional downward movement so that the slack course is formed by the cooperation of the dial and cylinder needles. I accomplish this result herein providing a freely-rotatable needle-lifting member which is normally out of engagement with the dial needles, but which is brought into engagement therewith thereby tolift the same at the time that thelever 7 V .is actuated. The rotatable dial-lifting member which is in the form of 'a wheel'will operate to give the successive vThis needle-lifting member is shown at 13 and it comprises a wheel which is rotatably mounted on a lever 14 that is pivotally con nected to 'the' rotating cam ring. In the illustrated embodiment of my invention the cam ring;4 is provided with a bracket 16 to which the lever ,14, is pivoted, as at 15. The lever 15 has associated therewith means whichlis engaged by the pattern-actuated lever 7 when the latter is operated to produce ,the slack course whereby the lever 14 will be raised about its pivotthereby bringing the roll 13 into engagement with the dialneedles 40, as seen in Fig. 4, and raising the needles thereby to cause them to assist in the formation of the slack course.

Inthe illustrated embodiment of my invention the;lever 14 is extended beyond the roll 13, theextended end overlying the pin 9 by which the lever 7 is actuated, and this extended end of the lever 14 is provided with an adjustable screw' 17 which is en gaged by the pin 9 when the lever 7 is rocked y the cam 10. With this construction it willjbe'obvious that when the cam 10 has been actuated tooperate the lever 7 thereby .3 to: vcause the needle cylindersto have their extra vertical movement for the formation ofjtheslack course, su.ch"movement of the.

lever 7 will actuate the lever 14 thereby bringing the roll 13 against the dial needles and elevating the latter. as seen in Fig. 4. This roll 13 has a rolling contact with the needle, and as it is carried around the dial by the cam ring 4, the dial needles are successively raised slightly and then lowered again with an even motion due to the circular shape of the roll. Moreover, since the roll 13 has a rolling contact with the dial needles instead of a sliding contact the en gagement of the roll with the needles does not subject the latter to any lateral strain tending to bend them or otherwise injure them.

I have found from experiments that the construction herein illustrated is eminently practical for the purpose and that its use in a knitting machine does not aifect in any way the operation of the knitting machine.

It is desirable that the roll 13 should be as large as practical in order to give the dial needles an easier rise and fall, and in order to permit the use of a comparatively large roll, I have placed the roll 13 at an angle so that it rotates about an inclined axis. This permits the use of a larger roll than would be possible if the roll operated in a vertical plane about a strictly horizontal axis. The edge of the roll is preferably beveled so that it will have a fiat contact with the needles.

I claim:

1. In a knitting machine, the combination with cylinder needles. of a rotary cam ring for operating them, dial needles, means for actuating said dial needles, a lever pivoted at one end to the cam ring, a roll mounted on said lever intermediate of its ends, a pattern-actuated lever pivoted to the cam ring, andconnections between said pattcrn-act.- ated lever and the first-named lever whereby the lattcr is raised by the former thereby to bring the roll into engagement with the dial needles.

2. In a knitting machine, the combination with cylinder needles, of a rotary cam ring for operating them, dial needles, means for actuating said dial needles, a lever pivoted at one end to the cam ring, a bevel-faced roll mounted on said lever to rotate about an axis inclined to the plane of the dial needles, a pattern-actuated lever pivoted to the cam ring, a pin extending therefrom, and a screw adjustably carried by the end of said first-named lever and adapted to engage said pin whereby movement of the pattern-actuated lever will raise the first-named lever to bring the bevel face of said roll into engagement with the dial needles.

3.111 a knitting machine, the combination with cylinder needles, of a rotary cam ring for operating them, dial needles, means for actuating said dial needles, a lever pivoted at one end to the cam ring, a roll mounted on said lever intermediate of its ends, a ver- In testimony whereof, I have signed my tically-swingin'g pattern-actuated lever pivname to this specification, in the presence of oted to the cam ring, and connections be two subscribing witnesses.

tween said pattern-actuated lever and the GEORGE E. STEVENS. 5 first-named lever whereby the latter is raised Witnesses:

by the former thereby to bring the roll into ALICE A. JACKSON,

engagement with the dial needles. JOHN B. FITZPATRICK.

topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner of Patents, Washington, D, (2. 

